


Christmas cahoots

by daughter_of_terror



Category: Actor RPF, Lee Pace - Fandom, Richard Armitage - Fandom, Richlee - Fandom
Genre: Holidays, M/M, Romance, Skiing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-19
Updated: 2017-12-19
Packaged: 2019-02-16 20:20:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13061442
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daughter_of_terror/pseuds/daughter_of_terror
Summary: Richard and Lee unite their families for a skiing trip in the French Alps over the Holidays. Christmas Day takes an interesting turn.





	Christmas cahoots

“Come on, old man, keep up!”

Richard was jerked out from his deep thoughts with a large snowball in the face and looked up to see a smiling red-nosed Lee with his phone up, documenting his reaction. 

he crunched his nose and wiped off the leftover snowball.

“Old man?!” he shot back and bent down to scoop up a handful of snow. “I’ll show you who’s an old man!”

Lee was grinning defiantly at him, not bothering to move because he knew how terrible Richard’s throw was. And sure enough, the snowball flew about five feet to the left of its intended target, hitting a tree branch. Meanwhile, Richard had closed the distance between himself and his boyfriend as they both regarded the lame landing of the snowball. 

“Aww, babe, you tried.” said Lee with a mock pity in his voice. 

“Oh, come on, stop being mean, or else I’m going to have to stop doing this…” he pulled his scarf down, grabbed Lee’s face with mittened hands and moved in for a kiss that made them both forget for a while that they were standing outside in the extreme alpine cold. 

“Mmhmmm… your nose is freezing.” Lee mumbled as they pulled away after what felt like minutes. 

Richard snorted. “Hah! You’re one to talk...Rudolph!” 

Lee stuck his tongue out at him. “Hey, I’ll have you know that Rudolph is a very important member of Santa’s workforce, thank you very much!”

Richard shrugged, but couldn’t help but grin stupidly back at his boyfriend. 

“Anyway,” he changed the subject, “you wanna maybe start heading inside? Get in a little… rest… before dinner?” His left eyebrow shot up at the question; the one Lee often referred to as his “suggestive eyebrow”.

Lee thought about this tempting offer for a minute, then, “Okay, how ‘bout we go for one more trip down the big one and then call it a day? Dinner’s not for another three hours; we can make it.”

Richard huffed, but agreed. He was honestly getting really tired and cold, but skiing was something that Lee was so passionate about whenever he got the chance, that it was equally as entertaining for Richard to just witness Lee enjoy himself as it was for him to actually ski himself. 

They headed for the line to the big chair lift that would take them up to the highest peak of the mountain. It was quite a cloudy Christmas Day, so the top was not actually visible, but they had went up and down it so often anyway that they were honestly starting to know their way by heart. 

When it was finally their turn, they took their seat on the bench and Lee scooted close up to him and wrapped his arm around his waist. Richard felt like he had never been as happy as he was at this very moment. Being there in the French Alps at Christmas with the love of his life was nothing less than perfection, and the fact that both their families were right there with them and that they all got to spend the holidays together for the first time just made everything even better. Until now they’d either spent their holidays on their farm, or with his family in Leichester or at Lee’s family home in Texas. The Pace family had always been big on skiing and had gotten him interested in the sport when he’d spent the holidays with them in this very resort a couple of years ago, so when Lee’s mum and dad had suggested that Richard invite his own family along for the family trip this year he’d jumped at the opportunity. His parents had required some convincing but when he reassured them that they didn’t necessarily need to actually step on a pair of skis to enjoy themselves, they’d agreed. His brother and his family had been excited from the start, especially his nephew. 

And so they had arrived en masse at their resort hotel on the 23rd and immediately strapped on their skis, or in Lee’s brother and sister-in-law’s case their snowboards, and had spent the last day and a half sliding down every inch of the hills around the hotel and town. Lee’s dad sadly couldn’t ski very well anymore because of his bad knee, but the hotel offered some great cross-country skiing trips, longer and shorter and with a guide, and so their parents had all rather went on a couple of those instead and then went back inside to the hotel common room to enjoy some cozy time in front of the warm fire. 

Richard loved how well the two families were getting along. He knew that their mothers had planned a spa day today before their big christmas dinner tonight and now they were probably lying side-by-side in a warm mud baths somewhere in the hotel spa. Lee’s dad had went into town for some last-minute christmas shopping, and if Richard knew his own father well enough, he guessed he was now snoozing in front of the fire in the common room, although if someone were to wake him he would steadfastly deny ever having fallen asleep - just resting his eyes for a minute. 

Lee’s brother had offered to teach Richard’s nephew how to snowboard so he and the kids were probably somewhere around the beginner hills which gave the rest of the adults some quality time of their own. 

“... that they actually used to have summer skiing facilities here?” 

Richard blinked and turned to face his boyfriend’s expectant face. “Hmmm… what?” 

“Rich, were you even listening to a word I’ve been saying?” 

Richard scrunched up his face guiltily. “Sorry… I must’ve zoned out…”

“What were you thinking about?” 

“Ehh… you…?” said Richard hesitantly.

“Aww, nice save, babe.” Lee grinned and pecked him on the cheek. 

They arrived at the peak and jumped off the bench as carefully as they could before making their way toward the starting point. Before starting their descension they shared another heated kiss with a promise of more to come once they got back to the hotel, then Richard went down first and Lee would follow right behind him. 

As he surged downwards faster and faster, Richard felt like he was on top of the world. He was having the time of his life with his favourite person in the world, surrounded with all the people they loved; everything was ready for tonight’s dinner to be one to remember; he’d already ordered a bottle of their favourite Pinot Noir, the small velvet box was in its secure place in his jacket pocket in their room (he’d double-checked it twice before he left this morning), and he’d even placed an order for chocolate ice cream desserts and champagne to be sent up to their room later that evening, if all would go according to plan. He knew he was being sappy but he didn’t care. This was his first step in his resolution to stop being afraid and to start doing more things that made him happy. 

***

They were both red-faced from the cold of the skiing range and Richard quite sore from falling down too many times when they finally returned back into the warmth and comfort of the hotel. 

It was two hours until dinner and they wanted some time to rest up a bit before getting ready. Richard also had his own reasons for wanting to get back this early - he needed to check in with the kitchen staff who would be aiding him in his mission and make sure that everything would be ready at the right time. 

Lee yawned as he removed his beanie and mittens in the hotel foyer. 

“I - I’m absolutely beat. I think I’ll go and get a short power nap before dinner.” He looked back at Richard, who was in the process of removing his jacket. “You coming, babe?”

“Yeah, I’ll be right behind you. I just need to, err… have a few words with my dad first.” He nodded in the direction of the ground floor sitting room where his father was nodding off in a plush chair, the book he had been reading sliding down to his lap. Richard hoped this excuse was mundane enough as to not arouse Lee’s suspicions. 

“Alright. Want me to bring this upstairs for you?” He asked, indicating Richard’s skiing apparel. 

“Thanks.” He handed Lee the bundle of clothes, but not until he had coaxed him into a short kiss before parting. 

“I’ll join you in a minute.” Richard murmured suggestively as their lips parted. 

He made sure that Lee had completely disappeared up the main staircase and out of sight before setting out on his mission. 

Making his way across the spacious entrance hall, he then discreetly slipped into the now dark and empty dining hall, at the far end of which the kitchens were located. 

He was only about halfway through the dining hall - just past the breakfast buffet station - when he heard the entrance door open and close behind him again. He quickly turned to see who was coming, trying to look innocent in case it turned out to be Lee - but it wasn’t.

Instead, Richard found himself being approached by Lee’s siblings, who’s overtly friendly grins gave Richard the impression that they were up to something. 

Maintaining his innocent facade, he greeted them happily. 

“Hey, Sarah! Wes! How’s it going? Great skiing conditions today, huh? Did you get…” 

“Oh, cut the crap, Rich,” Lee’s sister cut him off. It was remarkable how much her no-nonsense face looked like her older brother’s. “When are you going to pop the question?”

Richard froze and stared in open-mouthed shock at Sarah for a few seconds before stammering, “I - At - At dinner… how did you…?” 

“You’ve been reaching for the inside of your jacket unusually often recently, so we just kinda jumped to the conclusion.” Wes chimed in. “Also, I saw you take the box out the other night when you thought no one was looking. You haven’t exactly been that subtle, Rich.”

Richard groaned and rubbed the bridge of his nose, then looked slightly embarrassed at the others. 

“D - d’you think Lee knows?”

The siblings glanced at each others and chuckled. 

“Nah, I think you’re good.” Wes said, smirking. “He’s about as observant as you’re subtle.”

Richard glared at Wes, resenting that last comment, yet confident that he was probably right in guessing that Lee knew nothing about his plan. 

“Anyway, what’s your plan?” Sarah asked, punching his shoulder amicably. “What’re you gonna do?”

Richard resigned to disclosing his big plan to the siblings: Waiting until everyone had finished the main course and for the desserts to arrive; have the waiter bring out a special dessert for Lee, consisting of a chocolate sphere with the small velvet box hidden inside; getting down on one knee as Lee figured out what was up; ask the big question, then have the waiters bring out the champagne.

As Richard finished going over his plan, he noticed the siblings exchange looks of doubt.

“What?” he asked, worriedly. “Is it that horrible?”

“No, no,” Sarah said quickly, “Rich, it sounds perfect; it’s just…” she exchanged another look with her younger brother.

“What?” Richard asked again, slowly.

Sarah grimaced. “Well, it’s not… exactly… Lee… y’know?”

Richard stared confusedly, tilting his head. 

Sarah tried to voice her concerns more clearly. 

“Okay, look… Lee doesn’t like to be put on the spot like that - especially not in front of his entire family. He’ll get all flustered and shy and it’s honestly embarrassing. I’m just saying, you probably don’t want to make him feel like that on what’s supposed to be one of the happiest moments of his life.” She finished kindly, Wes nodding in agreement. 

Richard thought about this. It was disheartening, but true; Lee really didn’t like being  surprised like that in front of people - and he honestly should’ve remembered that. He ran his fingers through his hair in exasperation. 

“Fuck…” he said under his breath. “You’re absolutely right. What should I do?”

“Well,” said Wes slowly, “as a matter of fact, we’ve actually been giving this some thought; and we came up with a bit of a plan - if you’re interested?”

“Wait, you’ve been planning my proposal without me?” Richard asked incredulously. “You really have no faith in me, have you?”

“Oh, honey - none whatsoever.” Sarah said smirking, then added, “Nah, we just want everything to be perfect for our big brother.”

Richard could hardly argue with that.

“So… what did you have in mind?”

“Well, you know Lee’s a sucker for big gestures - but in private - personal ones, y’know?” Wes began.

Richard listened to the details of Wes and Sarah’s plan. To be fair, he thought, theirs sounded a lot more impressive than his had done. 

When they finished, Richard was totally on board. There was just that one tiny insignificant detail.

“Will we be able to pull this off?” he wondered. “Before dinner, I mean?”

Wes looked at his watch. “Hour and a half? Plenty of time.” he said reassuringly. 

***

The Christmas dinner that night was an amazingly lovely affair. The chefs and the waiting staff had pulled out all the festive stops for the hotel’s residents and the two families had one long table all to themselves. 

For a few hours there was nothing but happy chatting, enjoying the delicious dinner and desserts and families getting to know each other better. 

Richard couldn’t remember a time when he had been more content with his life than right at this moment, even though he was spending a lot of the evening going over the plan in his head again and again. 

Eventually, the party started splitting up. Children needed to be put to sleep and the grandparents retired to the hotel bar for a drink of cognac. 

As per arrangement, Lee’s siblings made their excuses and disappeared for half an hour, leaving Richard and Lee and the rest of the middle generation to continue chatting among themselves. 

Lee was getting increasingly publicly intimate to Richard, as he always got when he got a bit tipsy, and his hands were all over him. Richard kept discreetly glancing at his watch, hoping that Wes and Sarah would return from their part of the mission soon, or else he would be in a definite danger of caving in and allowing Lee to drag him up to their room and keep the intimacy going all night. 

Thankfully, it wasn’t long until they returned, giving Richard a small wink as they joined the group, sitting down beside their respective significant others. 

“Where have you two been?” asked Sarah’s husband. 

“Just… cahooting.” Sarah shrugged, and the matter was dropped. 

Lee stretched his long limbs and yawned deeply. 

“Man, I am. So. Full!” Turning to Richard, running his hand up and down his thigh, he added, “I don’t think I can make it up to the room. Can’t we just sleep down here?”

“Hmm, the way you’re behaving, I don’t think that would be entirely appropriate, love.” 

Richard smiled at his loving boyfriend, then grabbing his wandering hand and squeezing it, asked, “Hey, why don’t we go for a walk?”

“A walk? Lee sounded sceptic. “Now?”

“Sure! C’mon, love, it’ll be good for us. Burn off a bit of all the food before turning in. You know, there’s a short walking trail in the woods that’s supposed to be perfect for a short evening walk. Plus, there’s a full moon and the stars are super bright up here.” Richard reeled in, hoping he hadn’t overdid it with the enthusiasm. “What do you say?”

Lee bit his lip, thinking. 

“Alright, let’s do it.” He shrugged. 

Richard stood up from his chair. “Okay, I’ll just run upstairs and get our jackets.”

He was up and down again in less than five minutes. Lee was still sitting down snugly when he arrived back to the sitting room. Richard’s incredulous look was met with the most perfect of puppy eyes from Lee, who held out his hand and said, “I’m too tired, you have to pull me up.”

Sighing, Richard took Lee’s hand and pulled him up. Lee used the opportunity as he landed in Richard’s arms to lean in and kiss him deeply for a few seconds, not stopping until Richard pulled away and said decisively, “Lee? Walk?”

“Right!” Lee gave him one last peck. 

As they waved goodbye to the rest of the group, Richard picked up a small pre-packed backpack of supplies that he had gotten permission to store in a corner by the front entrance before dinner. 

 

Hand in hand, the two stepped out into the crisp, cold night air. The snow crunched under their feet as they set out toward the woods behind the hotel. 

As they were walking, they made a light chat about how good the dinner had been and what a great time everyone seemed to be having. 

When they reached the edge of the woods, however, Lee took a deep breath and said, “The walk was really a great idea, Rich. Thanks for dragging me along.”

“No problem.” Richard smiled and kissed Lee’s cold cheek. “I just felt like this was too beautiful a night to miss.”

Lee nodded in agreement. 

They spent the next few minutes walking in comfortable silence in the dark - the moon and the stars now hidden by the thickness of the trees. The path curved upwards and to the left, and as they were both starting to get a little out of breath, Lee pointed ahead and exclaimed, “Look! Are those lights?”

They walked a bit further, and sure enough, soon the path was lit up on either side by rows of outdoor candles burning brightly in the dark forest, and leading up to a small brightly burning bonfire in a fire pit ahead. 

As they reached the bonfire, they noticed it was situated in a small clearing in the trees, through which the bright stars and the full moon were lighting up the scene. 

“Oh my god.” Lee said softly. “Rich, what is this? Did you do this?”

Richard said nothing, but just winked at him, grinning. He removed the backpack and put it down on one of the wooden benches circling the pit. Then, pointing up through the clearing, said quickly, “Hey, look! A shooting star?”

“Ooh, where?”

Sure, it was a cheap trick, Richard knew, but he needed to distract Lee for a second as he bent down to fetch the small velvet box from the front pocket of the backpack.

What he did not expect, however, as he turned around again, the box secure and ready in his hand, was to find himself face to face with his boyfriend, who was grinning broadly and holding in his hands an identical small velvet box, open to reveal a plain golden ring, gleaming in the moonlight.

For the second time that day, Richard just stared in a stunned silence at a member of the Pace family. 

Closing his eyes and shaking his head, as if to shake off a hallucination, Richard stuttered, “I - what - you - “

Lee kept grinning, waiting patiently for him to catch up. 

The wheels in Richard’s brain finally started turning again and he gasped out loud in a low-key offended shock.

“Your siblings!”

Lee nodded apologetically. “Yeah…”

“You were conspiring with them against me this whole time?”

“Yeep.”

“Making me think they were helping me out?”

“Well, they  _ are my _ siblings - they’re loyal only to me.” Lee was finding the whole thing ever more amusing, but Richard was still confusedly trying to wrap his head around everything.

“Wait, how did you know I was planning this?”

“Oh, I found your ring in our room at home weeks ago. By accident, I swear!” He added hastily as Richard eyes widened.

“Weeks ago?” Richard said weakly. “And you just… arranged this whole thing so you could, what? Out-propose me?”

“Kinda, yeah…”

Richard shook his head again and just sighed in defeat. “Lee, you absolute cunning movie villain!”

Lee put up a pout and his best puppy eyes. “Do you hate me for ruining your proposal?”

“Hate you?” Richard smiled softly and leaned forward to kiss those pouting lips. “No, Lee, I think I actually love you even more. It’s just… now I don’t know what to with this.”

He opened his own velvet box to reveal a ring not very much unlike the one sitting in Lee’s box, and gleaming just as brightly in the light of the moon and the fire.

Lee let out a soft gasp and stared at it for a few seconds, thinking.

“Well… we could always do it together?”

Richard’s eyes narrowed at the suggestion.

“You mean… at the same time?”

Lee nodded. “On three?”

Richard was smiling as broadly as Lee now and, looking into his eyes, said, “One…”

“Two…” Lee returned the eye contact, eyebrows raised in excitement.

“Three.”

“Lee, will you marry me?”

“Richard, will you marry me?”

For about two seconds there was no sound but for the crackling of the fire - then they both burst into laugh.

“Hey, come here.” said Richard, pulling Lee into a tight hug. “Yes! Yes, I’ll absolutely marry you!” He croaked as he could feel his eyes misting over.

“Awesome.” Richard chuckled at the choice of Lee’s answer. “I wanna marry you too!”

Still beaming and misty-eyed, they shared a heated kiss under the moonlight before pulling apart again and putting their respective rings on each other’s finger.

After another short and happy-tearful make-out session, Lee pulled away and, gesturing at the backpack, said, “So, how, ‘bout you pop open that Pinot Noir I know you have in there and we have a little private celebration before going back to celebrate with the others?”

“The others? Wait, does everyone know about this?” Richard asked in shock, sinking down on the bench. 

“Oh, Wes and Sarah will have told everyone by now, I reckon.” said Lee shrugging as he sat down beside his fiancé, leaving exactly no space between them. “Just roll with it, babe. Everyone’s gonna be thrilled.”

Richard opened the bottle of wine and poured it into the two plastic wine glasses he’d brought, handing one to Lee as he put his arm around his waist, smiling, holding out his glass. 

“To us?”

“To us!”

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, guys!
> 
> Thank you all so much for all the positive comments on my last fic - you're so amazing! Sorry about the emotional rollercoaster :/ 
> 
> My second fic in this Holiday Calendar was originally just going to be a short sequel to the first one, but when I got to it, it didn't really feel right, so I scrapped it and decided to pick up a fic that I had already started a while ago but never finished. That one was supposed to have a majorly different plot compared to this one, but I really just wanted to write something happy and fluffy for my favourite dorks. 
> 
> So, yeah. 
> 
> As always, this is purely fictional. Names of family members are changed for privacy. 
> 
> Wishing all of you the happiest of Holidays/Christmas/Hanukkah/Yule, etc.


End file.
